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Grizzlies draft Tony Wroten, Jr. with 25th pick

The Memphis Grizzlies selected guard Tony Wroten, Jr. with the No. 25 overall pick in the first round of the 2012 NBA Draft, Grizzlies General Manager and Vice President of Basketball Operations Chris Wallace announced tonight.

In his lone season at the University of Washington, Wroten, Jr. (6-6, 203) became the first freshman in school history to earn First Team All-Conference honors, ranking fifth in the Pac-12 in scoring (16.0 points), eighth in assists (3.7) and second in steals (1.9) in 35 games.

The 19-year-old set numerous Husky freshman records, including scoring average, most points (559), assists (130) and steals (66), while winning Pac-12 Freshman of the Year. He also joined Detlef Schrempf (1984-85) as the second player in school history to compile at least 500 points, 150 rebounds and 100 assists in a single season.

The Seattle native led the Huskies with 12 games of 20-or-more points, including a UW freshman-record 29 points on March 8, 2012 vs. Oregon State in the Pac-12 Tournament. He tallied 22 points against Oregon on March 20 in the NIT Quarterfinals.

Wroten, Jr. was a member of the 2010 USA U-17 World Championship Team that posted a perfect 8-0 record and captured the gold medal while attending Garfield High School, which also produced former All-Star Brandon Roy.

The left-hander joins fellow Washington standout Quincy Pondexter on the Grizzlies’ roster.

Raptors add Terrence Ross in 2012 Draft

The Toronto Raptors announced Thursday they selected guard Terrence Ross from Washington with the eighth overall selection in the 2012 NBA Draft. In the Draft’s second round, the Raptors took forward Quincy Acy from Baylor with the 37th pick and Tomislav Zubcic from Croatia with the 56th choice.

Ross, 6-foot-7, 197 pounds, was a first-team All-Pac-12 selection last season as a sophomore. He averaged 16.4 points and 6.4 rebounds, and ranked among Pac-12 leaders in eight categories including: points (4th), rebounds (6th), three-pointers per game (2.1, 8th) and blocks (0.9, 13th). Ross averaged 25.0 points in four games during Washington’s run to the NIT semifinals. He shot a perfect 15-of-15 from the free throw line and led UW shooters from three point range, making 15-of-37 attempts (.405). He posted a career-high 32 points with eight rebounds versus Northwestern in the NIT.

As a freshman, Ross made his first career starts in the Pac-10 Tournament, averaging 15.3 points and 2.7 rebounds, and shooting 52.8 percent from the field to earn a spot on the five-man All-Pac-10 Tournament team. He tallied a team-high 19 points versus North Carolina in the NCAA Tournament.

Acy, 6-8, 225 pounds, averaged 12.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 29.7 minutes in 38 starts last season. He was named Big 12 All-Defensive team (unanimously) and All-Big 12 Second Team by the coaches. He is the second player in Baylor history to be ranked in Top 10 in scoring, rebounding, blocked shots and field goal percentage.

Zubcic, 6-11, 230 pounds averaged 7.9 points, 3.6 rebounds and 17.0 minutes in 22 outings in the Adriatic League. He recorded season highs of 24 points and 13 rebounds versus Cedevita on March 6.

Rockets add 3 players in 2012 NBA Draft

The Houston Rockets used the 12th overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft to select Connecticut guard/forward Jeremy Lamb. Houston then chose Iowa State forward Royce White with the 16th overall selection. The Rockets closed out their trio of first-round picks by drafting Kentucky forward Terrence Jones with the 18th overall pick.

Lamb (6-5, 180, Connecticut), who was an early entry candidate for the 2012 NBA Draft, was just the sixth sophomore in UConn history to score 1,000 career points (1,060). He was selected AP Honorable Mention All-America and All-Big East First Team as a sophomore after averaging 17.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. Lamb also helped UConn to a National Championship as a freshman, recording 12 points in the title game vs. Butler and earning a spot on the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team. During the summer of 2011, Lamb played with Team USA at the U19 FIBA World Championships, pacing the team with 16.2 points per game and 18 steals in nine contests. His father, Rolando, also played college basketball for VCU.

Rockets Director of Scouting Arturas Karnisovas:

“Jeremy Lamb, who we selected first, is a very talented shooting guard from UConn. He can score and is very athletic. We were very happy to select him with our 12th pick.”

White (6-8, 260, Iowa State) was the only player in the country in 2011-12 to lead his team in scoring (13.4 ppg), rebounding (9.3 rpg), assists (5.0 apg), steals (1.2 spg) and blocks (0.9 bpg) during his lone season at Iowa State. Overall, White became just the second player in school history to top the team in scoring, rebounding and assists in one season. His sophomore year with the Cyclones was highlighted by AP Honorable Mention All-America honors, All-Big 12 First-Team accolades, selection to the Big 12 All-Rookie Team and being named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year. White actually earned Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors three times in 2011-12. He was previously enrolled at Minnesota, but left the team in Dec. 2009 before playing in any contests of his freshman year.

Rockets Director of Scouting Arturas Karnisovas:

“We selected Royce White from Iowa State, who is a very talented combo forward who can create. He was a creator for Iowa State, is an elite passer and very explosive to the basket. We loved the way he ran the floor and created for others.”

Jones (6-9, 252, Kentucky), who was another of the early entry candidates for the 2012 NBA Draft, averaged 14.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in 76 games over his two seasons with Kentucky. He was one of just six players in UK history to record 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 140 blocks in a career. As a sophomore, Jones helped the Wildcats win the 2012 National Championship, while earning Second-Team All-SEC honors. In 2010-11, he was selected SEC Freshman of the Year, First-Team All-SEC and was a member of the SEC All-Freshman Team. The former McDonald’s All-American averaged 15.7 points and 8.8 rebounds as a freshman, leading the SEC in rebounding average and double-doubles (11), as well as ranking sixth in scoring and blocks per game (1.9 bpg).

Rockets Director of Scouting Arturas Karnisovas:

“With our third selection, we selected Terrence Jones from Kentucky, who is another talented combo forward who can score. He developed his inside game and feels comfortable facing up to the basket. Great defender, and as we saw, he was part of Kentucky’s championship team this year.

“We are confident that we’re going to run. We’re going to play fast and we’ve got lots of skilled young players, so we’re expecting to play exciting basketball and we’ll have time now to work on the synergy of the team.”

Cavs draft Dion Waiters, add Tyler Zeller

The Cleveland Cavaliers selected guard Dion Waiters with the fourth overall pick in the 2012 NBA Draft and acquired the draft rights to forward/center Tyler Zeller, the 17th overall pick, and guard/forward Kelenna Azubuike from the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for the 24th, 33rd and 34th overall picks of the 2012 NBA Draft.

“We knew we needed to add scoring and more playmaking and we were able to do that with Dion,” said Cavaliers General Manager Chris Grant. “He’s an aggressive, athletic, explosive player that is a great fit for our team. We also knew we needed another big man that can shoot, rebound, defend and get up and down the court with our style of play. We were able to do that with Tyler and we feel he is also a great fit for our team.”

Waiters, 20, was named the Big East Sixth Man of the Year and earned Third Team All-Big East honors after averaging 12.6 points on .476 shooting, 2.3 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 24.1 minutes per game and leading Syracuse to a 34-3 record and spot in the Elite 8 this season. The 6-foot-4, 221-pound guard also led the Orange in steals (1.8) and scored in double figures in 26 of the 37 games he played in as a sophomore. He scored a career-high 28 points on 8-16 (.500) shooting, including shooting 7-10 (.700) from three-point range, in 32 minutes against Cincinnati in the Big East Tournament. He also tallied 19 points, five rebounds, four assists and a career-best six steals in 21 minutes versus George Washington on Dec. 10. As a freshman, he averaged 6.6 points on .411 shooting, 1.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 16.3 minutes in 34 games.

Zeller, 22, earned ACC Player of the Year honors as a senior in 2011-12, becoming the first UNC senior to do so since 1978 (Phil Ford). The 7-foot, 250-pound forward/center also earned AP Second Team All-American honors and was named a finalist for the John R. Wooden Award, which celebrates the most outstanding player in college basketball. In 38 games (all starts), he averaged 16.3 points on .553 shooting, 9.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 28.2 minutes per game, helping the Tarheels reach the Elite 8. During ACC play, he led the conference in field goal percentage (.569) and offensive rebounds (4.0) while ranking second in rebounding (9.7) and third in scoring (18.5). Zeller recorded 14 double-doubles in his senior season and reached double figures in scoring on 32 occasions, including topping 20 or more points 11 times. He scored a season-best 31 points on 11-15 shooting (.733) and added 10 rebounds against Appalachian State on Dec. 17 and also put up 30 points, including making 20-23 (.870) free throws, eight rebounds and three blocks versus Maryland on Feb. 29.

As a senior, Zeller became only the third ACC player to win Academic All-America of Year honors (Shane Battier, 2001; Todd Fuller, 1996). He also won the Skip Prosser Award in 2011 and 2012 as the ACC’s top scholar-athlete in men’s basketball and was a four-time Academic All-ACC selection. He finished his career at UNC with averages of 12.8 points on .542 shooting from the field and .777 from the free throw line, 6.7 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 23.1 minutes per game in 117 games (75 starts) and was a member of the Tarheels’ 2009 National Championship Team.

Azubuike, 28, has career averages of 10.5 points on .459 shooting from the field and .409 shooting from the three-point line, 4.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 24.2 minutes per game in 208 games (83 starts).

Denver Nuggets add three players in 2012 NBA Draft

The Denver Nuggets selected Evan Fournier with the 20th overall pick, Quincy Miller with the 38th pick and Izzet Turkyilmaz with the 50th pick in the 2012 NBA Draft.

Fournier, a 6-6, 190-pound guard from France, averaged 14.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals while playing for Union Poitiers Basket 86 last season.

The 19-year-old became the youngest player in French League history to score at least 20 points when he totaled 21 against SLUC Nancy on Feb. 5, 2011. He also was a member of France’s Under-20 national team and averaged 16.9 points at the 2011 U20 European Championship.

Miller, 19, averaged 10.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.4 assists in his lone season at Baylor. The 6-9, 220-pound forward was named the 2012 Big 12 Co-Freshman of the Year while helping lead the Bears to the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament.

With their final pick of the night, the Nuggets selected the 22-year-old Turkyilmaz out of Turkey. The 7-1, 220-pound foward most recently played for Bandirma Banvit and appeared in 26 games during the Turkish league as well as eight games for Bandirma in the Eurocup in 2011-12.

Brooklyn Nets acquire 3 in draft

The Brooklyn Nets have acquired the draft rights to Tyshawn Taylor, the 41st selection in the 2012 NBA Draft, from the Portland Trail Blazers and Tornike Shengelia, the 54th pick, from the Philadelphia 76ers, both in exchange for cash, Nets General Manager Billy King announced tonight. In addition, the Nets selected Ilkan Karaman with the 57th overall pick.

Taylor (6’3”/185) was a four-year starter at Kansas scoring 1,580 career points, 14th most in KU history. The Hoboken, New Jersey native averaged a career-best 16.6 points, 4.8 assists and 1.3 steals as a senior. He was a 2011-12 AP Third Team All America selection and an All Big 12 First Team pick.

Shengelia (6’10”/230) has been a member of the Republic of Georgia’s National Team since 2008. He played the 2011-12 season for Belgacom Spirou where he averaged 8.9 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 18.4 minutes in 20 Belgium League games. He helped his team qualify for Euroleague play, and posted 8.3 points and 4.3 rebounds during nine games over the season. Shengelia represented the Republic of Georgia at 2011 Eurobasket, averaging 8.8 points and 4.6 boards for the Senior National Team.

Karaman (6’10”/236) is from Istanbul, Turkey and played for Galatasaray of the Turkish League. In 2011-12, he averaged 10.7 points and 6.4 rebounds in 23 minutes per game.

Celtics land Jared Sullinger, Fab Melo in Draft

The Boston Celtics selected Jared Sullinger, Fab Melo and Kris Joseph with their picks in the 2012 NBA Draft.

Sullinger, a 6’9” forward, was taken with the 21st pick in the first round. The native of Columbus, OH was a consensus First Team All-American, Wooden Award finalist and First Team All-Big 10 Selection in each of his two seasons at Ohio State. He also was named the 2011 Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Sullinger posted the third-most points (1,282) over his first two seasons at Ohio State behind Jerry Lucas (1,381) and Michael Redd (1,361). Sullinger also earned National Freshman of the Year honors from the Sporting News and the Wayman Tisdale Award from the USBWA. He averaged 17.5 points and 9.2 rebounds this past season in helping the Buckeyes get to the Final Four.

Melo, a 7’0” center, was taken with the 22nd pick in the first round. The native of Juiz de Forz, Brazil was the Big East Defensive Player of the Year as a sophomore. He is the Syracuse record holder for most blocks in a single game with 10 against Seton Hall this past season. He also was named Preseason Big East Rookie of the Year as a freshman. This past season he ranked first for Syracuse in rebounds (5.8 rpg) and blocks (2.9 bpg).

Joseph, a 6’7” forward, was taken with the 51st pick in the second round. The native of Montreal, Quebec, earned First Team All-Big East during his senior season and is one of 55 players in Syracuse University history to record 1,000 points in his career. During his senior season he ranked first on the Orange in points (13.4 ppg) and third in rebounds (4.7 rpg). During his junior season, he also was ranked first on the Orange in points (14.3 ppg) and second in rebounds (5.2 rpg).

Chicago Bulls, Tom Thibodeau must still work for extension agreement

With the draft completed, the Bulls will shift their focus to the next big issues on their docket.

Free agency opens Sunday. And while Tom Thibodeau’s contract extension talks have been ongoing for awhile, significant work remains, according to sources with knowledge of the discussions.

While one source warned the lack of a deal is typical for this stage of negotiations, it’s impossible not to see parallels with the Scott Skiles’ situation from June 2005. Thibodeau’s option for 2012-13 has been picked up. However, after progress on an extension preceding last season, the two sides lately have stalled on contract length and value.

Currently hurting Thibodeau is the fact the big-money era for NBA coaches has calmed a bit and the Bulls remain feeling a bit burned after signing Skiles to a three-year, $13.25 million extension, which came on top of his option being exercised.

— Reported by K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune

Hornets extend qualifying offer to Eric Gordon

The New Orleans Hornets announced Thursday that the team has extended a qualifying offer to guard Eric Gordon for the 2012-13 season, making him a restricted free agent.

Gordon averaged a team-leading 20.6 points in addition to 3.4 assists, 2.8 rebounds and 1.4 steals in nine games (all starts) while shooting 45.0% from the field. The Hornets were 6-3 when Gordon played this season and he led the team in scoring in all but one of those contests.

Blazers loved great Damian Lillard solo workout

Lillard’s workout wowed the Blazers’ officials, cementing the Weber State product’s spot at the top of their wish-list for the No. 6 pick, which Portland used to draft him Thursday. Even with North Carolina’s Harrison Barnes — a player many ranked higher in the draft pecking order — still available when Portland’s spot came up, general manager Neil Olshey said there was not strong sentiment in the draft room to shift the pick to Barnes.

“Not as much as you’d think,” Olshey said.

The Blazers were that focused on Lillard as their top choice for the No. 6 spot. In fact, Portland’s second choice for the No. 6 pick was gone by the time the Blazers turn came (Olshey declined to identify the player, but did confirm he was drafted ahead of Lillard).

Although the Blazers performed a lot of advance work in getting down to Lillard, the June 15 visit was the tipping point. Buchanan said the Blazers put Lillard through a variety of situations that tested his footwork and his ability to get his shot off – coming off screens, on the run, off the catch, and so on.

— Reported by Mike Tokito of the Oregonian